Hawk

For a film that lasts no longer than forty minutes Hawk is a rather interesting and deeply emotional story which is very enjoyable to watch. The film focuses on the life and story of a young boy - Rowan - who must make amends for the mistakes he has made. The film deals with some very complex ideas and these are highlighted through various mediums during the film.

One outstanding feature of the film is the use of visual effects and transitions which allow an ordinary forest to be transformed into a realm of myths, gods and powerful natural forces. The lighting is also used and set up such that there is an ominous sense of foreboding which is present throughout the film; this allows viewers to engage in the film and understand Rowan's fears. Overall the visuals of the film are sapid and highly impressive to watch.

The soundtrack to Hawk is something which must not go unnoticed as it lifts the mood in places and plunges viewers into doubt and worry at others; this has the effect of enthralling the viewer and leading them through the film, and also helps to emphasize key moments very well.

The one major downfall of the film is that the plot can often get very choppy and confusing which meant I wondered what was going on at certain points, the use of flashbacks and flash-forwards is effective but can also leave viewers slightly perplexed during a considerable amount of the film. The script is good and the use of a narrator allows some clarity as to what is going on however there are a couple of points where it becomes slightly cliché and it would've been better to have watched the proceedings rather than have them narrated to us. Nonetheless as the film progresses it becomes ever more apparent why we were shown the various time shifts and by the end of the film everything is cleared up and understandable.

The camera work allows for confusion and pandemonium to thrive and we are able to see the events unfold through the eves of the protagonist which aids to our understanding of the story and the reasons for certain actions. The epic landscapes and rolling clouds used as backgrounds are also effective and play greatly on the concept of isolation from the civilized world. We also get a glimpse at some of the emotions in the film and the settings similarly highlight some of the characters feelings very astutely.

Overall Hawk is a very enjoyable film, combining fantasy and mystery with a story of growth and loss; although it can be quite confusing at points, all is explained by the end of the film and so Hawk is definitely worth watching.

Hawk is a captivating and visually stunning tale of a young boy's journey to manhood through learning the lesson of morality.

We follow Rowan through his childhood as he is taught about the world around him with stories from his Taid, a mysterious man that seems to know more about the world than he confesses to.

The countryside is shown in dramatic landscapes, with a plethora of green forest and hills. The CGI used on the skies is dramatic and enables the world to fully form as a place of nature; a nomadic reserve full of life.

The CGI throughout the film is wonderfully enriching; each sky and landscape is used to full potential and adds to the atmosphere of the narrative as a whole.

There is a strong focus on Welsh lore, which creates a magical atmosphere. However, it feels somewhat compromised by the lack of background story development; we do not learn fully who the characters are or why they live alone, despite the use of a voice-over.

This creates a distance between the characters and the audience as further understanding is compromised by lack of development.

The story is enticing to watch and the use of the Welsh language is clever and intelligently adds to the dramatic atmosphere.

The musical score works discreetly to add an extra layer of atmosphere to each scene when used, and adds a magical feel to the film as a whole.

Hawk falls in between a short and a feature-length film, and it is pronounced in the way that the narrative is large and substantial enough to be developed further (which would push it into the boundary of the feature-length) and yet it is too rich to be squeezed into the short category.

Hawk is a world of intrigue that is well worth viewing not least for its visual beauty, but more so the interesting story of a world that is highly imaginative and inviting.

Hawk has many aspects that are powerful, and more that have potential to be powerful, but my feeling towards the content was predominantly confusion. Although it featured some beautiful landscape and a wonderfully soaring score, the film didn't quite seem to do justice to the wonderful idea at its heart. It felt like it should be a lyrical tale of folklore, a mystical underworld land and one boy's journey into understanding the spiritual worlds of nature and beyond human kind, but didn't quite seem to make it.

The tale is told so much in voice-over from the protagonist Rowan, and there are choppy time jumps so often that it loses the linear narrative and breaks up the genuinely touching relationship between a boy – Rowan - and his grandfather. The way the mystical world is portrayed is tense and at times effectively scary, shown in flashes as the character sees it. This is well done, but I wasn't entirely sure why they'd left the world of humans in the first place and as a result of not knowing what was at stake or their reasons for leaving, I didn't care as much about them as I wanted to.

The way to access this world appears to be through drinking magic mushroom tea. Although at first I was sceptical of an old man getting high while looking after his grandson, it became clear that this was a gateway to a more meaningful world. The dialogue is mostly good, but at times teeters rather too close to the edge of being trite and there were some things I'd prefer to have seen happening rather than been told.

The film really came together at the end, where all is revealed quite beautifully and I really felt for Rowan. The point becomes clear through the moral message and the strongest part of this film is the last ten minutes where the pace picked up, I understood the situation Rowan had found himself in and could empathise with it, and it felt like for the first time, there really was something at stake.

Although I feel that the film was let down slightly by the script and the choice to have a narrator, the idea behind this film is very strong, the images are powerful, the music is wonderful and the end is moving. Hawk is definitely worth watching.

The performance of Robert Gwyn Davin in the final stages of 'Hawk' is powerful and yet not quite supported strongly enough by the rest of the film. I care, but I feel I could care more.

The location and the cinematography ensure that the film is consistently visually stunning; creating a sense of otherworldliness that provides a powerful foundation for the action. This combined with the excellent score and the characters' mellifluous Welsh accents, works to provide the entire piece with a strong ethereal quality.

For me, other than the extraordinary aesthetic of the film, its other greatest triumph is the animals. Generally when animals are not just on screen but actually directly contribute to the narrative, it can feel very forced. Instead of it making things feel more real, all I begin to imagine is the animal's handler jumping up and down behind the camera whilst trying to reassure the director that Rover can indeed portray grief. Essentially animals often hinder films by making the audience feel more conscious of the work that is going into telling the story rather than the story itself, and at this point all illusion is lost. However, In this film the hawks are obviously key to the narrative, but actually do much more than simply allow the plot progress. Every movement of each animal and particularly the hawks feels natural, and this provides an integral link between reality and fantasy.

Paradoxically it's often when the audience is unconscious of the filmmaker's touch that they are doing their best work. What is remarkable about 'Hawk' is the delicate way in special effects and shot choice have been deeply thought about and brilliantly implemented, making the natural landscape infinitely more vivid and full of possibility. Just as with the inclusion of the different animals everything feels cohesive and natural but at the same time wonderfully enchanted.

In regards to the story my overriding sense is that what is being told is simply too grand for the 39 minutes it is allowed. Certain shots feel rushed which makes it seem as though the plot progression is too quick to properly do the story justice. It battles with other elements of the film that are particularly strong and simply cannot compete. However this is all that is lost in a film that is visually stunning as well as engaging.

This is the tale of a boy living in the wilderness with his grandfather, and learning the ways of nomad life. He follows his grandfather's teachings, and fervently believes in traditional stories of spirits, until one day the boy finds his grandfather dead in the forest. The boy seeks solace in a potion of magic mushrooms and becomes entranced. In a daze of hallucinations he panics and commits an ungodly act, upturning the natural balance of nature. He is now forever in the debt of an eerie God. Or is he?

This unusual tale lies on the boundary between reality and the sublime. Stunning cinematography, seamless visual effects and colourist skills, help to bring out the emotion and create atmosphere in the film with the aid of an intense and powerful choral soundtrack.

Parts of this film felt a little rushed or unclear, which is a shame, because it could easily be a really fantastic piece. I feel that more work could have been done to develop the characters and clarify the storyline, which left me a little confused in places. The acting skills also tended to be a little over the top, in contrast to the beautiful realism of the visual effects.

Overall, I feel the technical skill displayed in the film made up for its flaws, and meant I could enjoy the piece based on its creativity.